Pandemic, politics, and passing of a civil rights icon

By Last updated Dec 28, 2020

GEORGIA SENATE RUNOFFS: Double drains for two seats in the US Senate are further evidence that Georgia is now a battlefield after nearly two decades of Republican domination. The two races, due to be decided on January 5th, will focus on Georgia as the outcome will determine the balance of power in the Senate. Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler is challenged in a runoff election by Rev. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat. The other shows Republican Senator David Perdue and Democratic challenger Jon Ossoff. Early voting began this month, and a significant portion of the vote is expected to be cast this year.

JOHN LEWIS: Civil rights icon John Lewis dies in July at the age of 80. Three former presidents praise him at his funeral at Ebenezer Baptist Church, which was once presided over by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Lewis campaigned for equality and the right to vote during the Civil Rights Movement and later in Congress as a longtime US representative. He was known worldwide for leading protesters at the 1965 Bloody Sunday march over Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, where he was beaten by state troops from Alabama.

AHMAUD ARBERY: The assassination of Ahmaud Arbery by armed white men fueled a national outcry over the killing of unarmed black men. In the coastal Georgia area, it was more than two months before authorities charged Gregory McMichael and his adult son Travis McMichael of Arbery’s deaths. Also indicted was William “Roddie” Bryan, whose cell phone video of the shooting was released in May just before the arrest. The McMichaels armed themselves and chased Arbery in a truck after they saw him running in their neighborhood outside of Braunschweig. They told the police that they suspected him of being a burglar and that the shooting was in self-defense.

RAYSHARD BROOKS: The police body camera video shows two Atlanta officers talking quietly and respectfully to Rayshard Brooks for more than 40 minutes after responding to complaints that Brooks was in a drive-through lane in his car on June 12 Asleep of Wendy Officers attempted to handcuff Brooks, he resisted in a fight caught on the dash camera video. Brooks grabbed a taser from one of the officers and fired it at Officer Garrett Rolfe as he ran away. Rolfe fired his gun and an autopsy revealed that Brooks had been shot twice in the back. The murder sparked new demonstrations against police brutality in Atlanta. Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields resigns less than 24 hours after the shooting. The Fulton County District Attorney is charging Rolfe and Brosnan with aggravated assault and violation of his oath. Her lawyers have stated that her actions were justified.

INVESTIGATION INVESTIGATION: An Associated Press review of medical records and interviews reveals growing allegations that surgeries and other procedures were performed on immigrants detained in Georgia who never looked for them or did not fully understand the situation. Lawyers and experts say women’s lack of consent or knowledge raises serious legal and ethical problems. Tony Pham, acting director of immigration and customs control in the US, says he is committed to the health, welfare and safety of ICE prisoners.

CHURCH MURDERERS: A judge in July overturns the conviction of a man convicted of killing two people in his church in South Georgia in 1985 and orders a new trial. Dennis Perry had been in prison for 20 years following the murders of Harold and Thelma Swain at the Rising Daughters Baptist Church in Waverly, Georgia. The verdict comes after the DNA recovered at the scene of the crime, when re-investigating the case, matches that of another suspect.

MEDICAID EXPANSION: Georgia Governor Brian Kemp unveiled a plan in November to expand Medicaid to the state’s poorest able-bodied adults, on condition that they work, volunteer, receive professional training, or attend school.

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Associate Press Writer Kate Brumback and Jeff Amy in Atlanta; and Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia, contributed.

FILE – This Saturday April 4, 2020, the coffin of Rev. Joseph E. Lowery, horse and carriage, is being carried to the grave in Westview Cemetery in Atlanta. More than four decades after the death of his friend and civil rights icon, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., the fiery Alabama preacher Lowery was at the forefront of the battle for equality, with an unforgettable performance that often rivaled King’s more unpredictable. (AP Photo / John Bazemore, Pool, File)

Photo credit: John Bazemore

FILE – In this August 3, 2020 file photo, 7-year-old Paul Adamus waits at the bus stop for his first day of school in Dallas, Georgia. As schools reopen across the country, they can quickly identify and contain coronavirus outbreaks before they get out of hand, put to the test. (AP Photo / Brynn Anderson, File)

Photo credit: Brynn Anderson

FILE – This Friday May 8, 2020, a woman is wearing a face covering depicting the shooting victim Ahmaud Arbery, which was imprinted during a rally to protest Arbery’s murder in Brunswick, Ga. Two men were charged with murder in February and shot and killed Ahmaud Arbery, whom they followed in a truck after seeing him running in their neighborhood. (AP Photo / John Bazemore, File)

Photo credit: John Bazemore

FILE – In this July 29, 2020 file photo, Ga Breedlove pauses at the coffin of Rep. John Lewis, which lies at rest in the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta. Lewis, who carried the fight against racial discrimination from the southern battlefields of the 1960s to the convention halls, died on July 17, 2020. (AP Photo / Brynn Anderson, File)

Photo credit: Brynn Anderson

FILE – In this June 7, 2020 file photo, a NASCAR official kneels during the national anthem prior to a NASCAR Cup series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia. The largest auto racing series in North America in years had specific guidelines for its teams to stand, helmetless and hatless, with their right hand over their hearts during the anthem. This language was removed less than a month ago as NASCAR is going through its own accounting. (AP Photo / Brynn Anderson, File)

Photo credit: Brynn Anderson

FILE – Members of the Georgia National Guard are working on cleaning and disinfecting hallways and public areas of the Provident Village Assisted Living and Memorial Home in Smyrna, Georgia this Tuesday, May 5, 2020. Despite the lack of coronavirus cases, residents or employees, the house welcomed the additional help from the guard. (AP Photo / John Bazemore, File)

Photo credit: John Bazemore

FILE – The file photo “RIP Rayshard” is being sprayed on a street sign this Saturday, June 13th, 2020 as flames engulf a Wendy’s restaurant during protests in Atlanta. In the restaurant, Rayshard Brooks was shot dead by the police the night before after a fight in the thoroughfare. (AP Photo / Brynn Anderson)

Photo credit: Brynn Anderson

FILE – Officials at Gwinnett County’s Voter Registration and Election headquarters in Lawrenceville, near Atlanta, are working on ballot papers this Friday, November 6th, 2020. (AP Photo / John Bazemore, File)

Photo credit: John Bazemore

FILE – This Saturday, October 10, 2020, Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett, 13, dips past Tennessee defender Jaylen McCollough, 22, for the first half of an NCAA college football game Athens, Ga, to score a touchdown (AP Photo / John Bazemore, file)

Photo credit: John Bazemore